Emphysema linked to smoking cannabisMarch 17, 2000The study reports four cases of the early stages of the disease in four young men aged 27, 35, 44 and 46 who smoked cannabis regularly. Examination showed that large areas of both lungs in each of the men had simply disappeared and been replaced with cysts. This is a form of emphysema, a disease that gradually diminishes the surface area of the lungs. It is usually associated with heavy cigarette smoking. Each of the men described had been or were current smokers, but the amount smoked was minimal in three of them: two cigarettes a day in one, half an ounce of tobacco in another. One man smoked only cigars. But all of them had been, or continued to be, heavy cannabis users. The 27 year old had smoked several pipes of pot a day for several years; both the men in their 40s smoked two or three joints a day, while the man in his 30s had smoked two joints a week for about 20 years. The common perception of cannabis, say the authors, is that it is harmless. But other than the mind altering substances in pot, smoke from both cigarettes and joints is the same, only more tends to enter the lungs in pot smokers, because of the long drags on joints. The physical effects on the lungs of smoking three to four joints a day are equivalent to those produced by smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, say the authors. AlphaGalileo Foundation |
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| Related Smoking Current Events and Smoking News Articles Women Can Quit Smoking and Control Weight Gain Many women don't quit smoking because they are afraid of gaining weight. That's because nicotine suppresses the appetite and boosts a smoker's metabolism. Cigarettes Harbor Many Bacteria Harmful to Human Health Cigarettes are "widely contaminated" with bacteria, including some known to cause disease in people, concludes a new international study conducted by a University of Maryland environmental health researcher and microbial ecologists at the Ecole Centrale de Lyon in France. Study raises concerns about outdoor second-hand smoke Indoor smoking bans have forced smokers at bars and restaurants onto outdoor patios, but a new University of Georgia study in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that these outdoor smoking areas might be creating a new health hazard. Early end to key study on benefits of niacin, a B vitamin, in keeping arteries open was premature Heart experts at Johns Hopkins are calling premature the early halt of a study by researchers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Washington Hospital Center on the benefits of combining extended-release niacin, a B vitamin, with cholesterol-lowering statin medications to prevent blood vessel narrowing. Athletes on performance enhancers more likely to abuse alcohol, other drugs College athletes who use performance-enhancing substances may be at heightened risk of misusing alcohol and using recreational drugs as well, according to new research in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. 90 percent of Africans are not protected by smoke-free laws As African nations are poised to undergo the highest increase in the rate of tobacco use among developing countries, nearly 90 percent of people on the continent remain without meaningful protection from secondhand smoke, according to a new report released at a regional cancer conference today. Workplace BPA exposure increases risk of male sexual dysfunction High levels of workplace exposure to Bisphenol-A may increase the risk of reduced sexual function in men, according to a Kaiser Permanente study appearing in the journal Human Reproduction, published by Oxford Journals. Exposure to several common infections over time may be associated with risk of stroke Cumulative exposure to five common infection-causing pathogens may be associated with an increased risk of stroke, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the January 2010 print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Carnegie Mellon researchers link health-care debate to risk of dying in US and Europe The current health care debate in the United States is complicated. Trade-offs between heath care expenditures, lifestyle choices and life expectancy have been suggested but seldom clearly demonstrated. Developmental delay could stem from nicotinic receptor deletion The loss of a gene through deletion of genetic material on chromosome 15 is associated with significant abnormalities in learning and behavior, said a consortium of researchers led by Baylor College of Medicine (www.bcm.edu) in a report that appears online today in the journal Nature Genetics. More Smoking Current Events and Smoking News Articles |
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